When I think of comfort and joy one of the things that comes to mind is plaid. Just looking at it brings me joy and there’s nothing quite as cozy as a comfortable plaid blanket.

I had already planned on decorating my front porch in plaid this year. Imagine my excitement when I found out that Alison from Polohouse had chosen the theme ‘Plaid Tidings’ for her December Favorites on the First,

I grouped my collection of plaid containers. A picnic basket, a couple thermoses, and coolers.

I recently found this old heater at a thrift shop. It was actually in a mans cart. I mentioned how cool it was when I walked by. He said, “do you want it?” I said, “No, you buy it”. He said, “I was thinking of putting it back”. He didn’t have to ask twice. I knew it would be so fun for Christmas.

I mixed in some of my buffalo checked ribbon and tied strips of plaid and burlap to pumpkins sprayed with hammered iron paint for the urn. I bought the boxwood wreath at Trader Joe’s, but the pine boughs were gathered from my Fil’s garden.

My rustic wooden star came from the ‘Star Mill Antiques’. My dads old lunch pail is home to my collection of vintage scotch tape dispensers. I made the pillows from a dress I found at a thrift shop. I also got the minnow bucket at a thrift in AZ.

I just found this plaid golf bag at an estate sale for $5. A lot of people in UT go skiing on Christmas day. But I’m sure that there are those in warmer areas that go golfing.

Even the putter agrees that Christmas is a #1 holiday! The white door is off of my daughter, Kylee’s home which is over 100 years old. I wonder if it’s the original door?

I love the bits of red paint that remain on my old apple ladder.

More pumpkins, another minnow bucket I picked up at a yard sale, and a rustic shoe form sit on top of my wooden wheelbarrow.

A little plaid, a tin star, and twigs dress up a wooden church birdhouse sitting in my birdbath.

I love old lanterns. I hung them from my garage lights. I got this idea from my friend, Joyce. Hope she doesn’t mind that I copied her!

The pies are in the oven and the countdown begins. Wishing all of my friends in America a very Happy Thanksgiving!

I wish you all an abundance of blessings and a cornucopia of thankfulness!

I really appreciate you taking time out of your busy day to come party here at Share Your Cup. Can’t wait to see what filled your cup this week!

Soon Thanksgiving will be just a memory and the full Christmas mode will begin! Don’t forget to come join us for our ‘Creating Christmas’ party beginning on Dec. 7th. I am really looking forward to seeing how everyone creates their own special Christmas magic!

Aren’t these cupcakes so festive for the Christmas holidays? Mary Ellen from That's My Homeshared her recipe.

Don’t ask me why, but I can’t get linky to show me the number of visits on each link. So I guess I am bagging show the top two most visited links.

Thanks so much for sharing and please grab my button if you were featured.

Now let’s Party!

A few rules and then let the fun begin!

1. I would love for you to be a follower of Have a Daily Cup of Mrs. Olson. 2. Link up a particular post and not your entire blog. Please limit your links to no more than three and please do not link up the same thing you linked up last week.3. Please have a link back to this post. That way others will know where the party is. Feel free to grab my button on the sidebar if you’d like. Only those with a link back will be featured.4. Please find time to visit at least two other participants. It’s a great way to find new friends.

After you link up please come back and leave a comment. They help to fill my cup!

Thanksgiving is drawing near and if you are hosting dinner at your home, tomorrow will be a busy day.

I will be trying to wrap things up. Doing the last minute preparations!

(here’s a little peek at what I’ve been doing to get a head start on Christmas. . .Wrapping things up!)

I will be making the pies in the morning soon after I rise. Every year I strive to make crust as flakey and delicious as my mother did. Not quite there yet. Maybe in 20 more years. lol!

(my wrapping this year is red, aqua, green, and white. The trio of accent colors in my family room)

Our families favorites are Pecan and Coconut Cream. The pecan pie recipe I use was my mothers and the Coconut Cream was my mil’s. A wonderful tribute to those two wonderful cooks!

(I pulled odds and ends of trims, ribbons, and lace from my stash. Mixed it with burlap and paper doilies for a rustic yet elegant feel)

I also start getting my homemade stuffing ready the day before. It’s our favorite side dish! The recipe is from my mother, My mil gave me a couple of tips that helped me as a young bride to get that perfect stuffing.

(doily flowers are so easy to make. Just poke you finger in the middle, draw the doily up and twist.)

Did you think I would leave you hanging and not share the tips? No way my friends!

1. How to tell if your stuffing is moist enough: After adding liquid. (which I do this just before stuffing the bird) grab a handful in the palm of your hand. Close your hand. Open it up. If it stays in a ball it is moist enough. If you are cooking the stuffing outside of the turkey you will want it a little moister. Have you ever had stuffing that was way too wet? I have!

2. Grate a carrot into your stuffing for a little pop of color. Looks pretty and is good for you too!

(rolled burlap flowers are another easy way to dress your packages up. I start with a knot for the base. I then roll a little and hot glue it onto the knot. Keep rolling and gluing until you get the size of flower you want. Cut the burlap on an angle and tuck in back.)

Something that I do (which my mother did) is save bread all year long for my stuffing. Sounds crazy, I know. but it’s no bother and I love the mixture of a variety of left over breads, rolls, croissants, and even hamburger and hot dog buns.

When I have left over breads that are not so fresh I take them out of the package and place in a bowl in my pantry to dry. Of course this has to be done before they start to mold. Let them totally dry out. Then I put them in a zip lock bag or a plastic grocery bag and store them on my food storage shelf. If you let them dry out and get hard they will not mold.

(bits of cedar clipped from my garden to give them a touch of nature)

Isn’t it funny how cooking traditions are carried down from generation to generation? My oldest daughter called me a couple days ago and said, “Hey mom, do you have any extra dry bread that I could use for my stuffing?” Wonder if she will save it when I’m gone?

(I have always loved wrapping gifts ever since I was a teenager. Nothing fancy, but a little love goes into each and every one!)

Now the next trick is knowing how much sage to add. I went to a party once that the stuffing had so much sage that it was green. My trick is my hubby. Yup, he’s my taster and tester. To tell me, that’s just right!

There you have it, a few tips for Thanksgiving. Now, I’m off to relax and call it a wrap!

Oh, but I will be cutting up that dry bread.

Do you have any cooking traditions that have been carried down from your family?

Hope to see you tomorrow for Share Your Cup. If you’re not too busy wrapping it up!

They asked me if I had a statement chair that I would like to share in a post.

A Statement chair? Sorry, I couldn’t pick just one.

I must admit that I have a bit of a chair fetish. Old or new, I just can’t get enough!

Now tell me, could you walk into my basement guest bedroom and not notice this chippy beauty? She’s old, she’s worn, but oh what a doll!

Here’s one that’s not quite show showy, but still causes you to take notice. I covered the seat with an old grain sack.

Now that I’ve shared a couple of my ‘old’ statement chairs. Let’s see a few more modern chairs.

This is probably my favorite statement chair in my home. Everyone that visits always comments on what a great chair it is.

You might say that I am ‘hound dog’ crazy for houndstooth! I also love the high wing back style, the tufting, and nail heads. This chair is big and comfy. Even the men in my family like this chair. It is very similar to One Kings Lane Rachel chair.

I have had this chair in my living room for years, It traveled with us from our previous home. I never tire of it. I adore the soft comfortable cushion, the check fabric, the piping, and the skirted flounce.

This is my newest statement chair. It’s in our basement family room. I’ve placed a gold pillow in it for Fall. Again, I love the nail heads and that floral design just cried out to me. Not to mention that she is super comfy and looks smashing with our red leather sofa and love seat!

I’m sure by now you’ve figured out I love color and patterns. A lot of my blog friends have neutral chairs and I love them. However, when I bring a new chair home it always seems to be pretty bold.

A good chair is like an old friend. You feel comfortable around them and love everything about them!

Do you have a statement chair in your home that you love?

I enjoyed visiting their Home Decor Resource Guide and the great information that it shared! Wondering what style of chair you have? Check them out and see.

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Hello, I'm Jann

I'm a mother of 5 married children, I have 10 darling grand children with fun and crazy personalities. They help to keep me young. I love the outdoors and love to garden. Just something about getting my hands into ...